Top Personal Injury Settlements of 2025

$50 Million Settlement After Supplier Ignored Pleas to Replace Dying Man's Breathing Device

Simon Law secured a $50 million wrongful death settlement after a young man with intellectual disabilities died when a national durable medical equipment supplier repeatedly ignored his mother's calls for a replacement breathing device.

San Diego Pays $30 Million Over Fatal Police Shooting of a Fleeing Teenager

The Wilson family's 16-year-old son was shot and killed by a San Diego police officer on January 28, 2025, seconds after he ran into the officer's path while fleeing gunfire from another teenager at Santa Fe Depot. His parents sued the City of San Diego and the officer in San Diego Superior Court in June 2025, alleging the officer fired twice into the boy's back without warning, in violation of his civil rights and of department use of force standards. The San Diego City Council voted unanimously on December 9, 2025 to approve a $30 million settlement, with the city paying $5 million and the rest drawn from a public liability fund shared by member municipalities. San Diego attorneys King Aminpour and Michael VanGalio worked the case alongside lead attorney Nicholas Rowley.

After trial: Settlement approved by unanimous vote of the San Diego City Council, with no admission of liability. It is not subject to appeal, and the city has approved and funded it.

$23.5 Million Settlement for Family of Surveyor Killed in Scaffold Fall at UChicago Cancer Pavilion

David O'Donnell, 27, died after an improperly anchored scaffold at the University of Chicago Cancer Pavilion construction site swung away from the building during a 44 mph wind gust and dropped him 140 feet; GWC attorney Louis Cairo secured a $23.5 million settlement for his family in June 2025.

$21.5 Million Settlement for Jogger Mauled by Dogs King County Failed to Remove

King County paid its largest personal injury settlement on record after a 38-year-old mother of two was mauled by two dogs the county had repeatedly been warned about but failed to remove.

$17 Million New Jersey Birth Injury Settlement Structured to Pay Out Roughly $27 Million to $37 Million

Daryl L. Zaslow of Eichen Crutchlow Zaslow settled a hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy birth injury case for $17,000,000, a portion of which purchased annuities that carry guaranteed payments of $18,502,301 and anticipated payments of $28,700,273. Judge James Den Uyl approved the terms on January 3, 2025.

After trial: A court-approved structured settlement, so there is no appeal. It was funded at $17 million; the annuities guarantee $18,502,301 and are anticipated to pay $28,700,273, putting the total value between roughly $27 million and $37 million.

Drillship Floorhand Hurt in the Moonpool: $16 Million Jones Act Settlement

Zehl & Associates recovered $16 million for a drillship floorhand injured in the moonpool of a Gulf of Mexico rig, ranked by TopVerdicts as the largest reported Jones Act maritime settlement in Texas for 2025.

Family of Young Mother Killed at Atlanta Highway Construction Site Settles Wrongful Death Suit Against Contractor

Stevie Bryant, a young mother, died in May 2020 after a crash on the Downtown Connector in Atlanta sent the car she was riding in into an impact attenuator that had been left improperly installed at a highway construction site. Her family sued the contractor, Precision 2000, Inc., in DeKalb County State Court. The case settled for $12.5 million in 2025, less than a week before jury selection was to begin.

Grain Delivery Driver Electrocuted at Silo: $12 Million Settlement Against Power Company and Property Owner

A 23-year-old grain truck driver was killed when an electrical arc jumped from an overhead high-voltage power line to the portable auger he was using at a commercial silo, and his family recovered $12 million from the power company and property owner.

$10 Million Settlement for Family of Sonya Massey, Shot in Her Kitchen After Calling 911 for Help

Ben Crump and Antonio Romanucci, representing the family of Sonya Massey, secured a $10 million wrongful-death settlement with Sangamon County, Illinois, after sheriff's deputy Sean Grayson shot the 36-year-old mother in her own kitchen when she called 911 to report a possible prowler. Crump called it by far the largest settlement of any kind in the county's history.

Beverly Kinney Crosswalk Death: $10 Million Metro Settlement and Mandatory Driver Training

Cincinnati's Metro transit agency paid $10 million to the estate of Beverly Kinney, an 87-year-old struck and killed in a marked crosswalk by a bus driver with a suspended license, and agreed to overhaul its driver training.

Painter struck by corporate van in illegal U-turn: $7.5 million after $10 million verdict

A Ventura County jury awarded $10 million after a corporate van driver executed an illegal U-turn into a painter's path, leaving him needing a cervical fusion four years later; the case settled for $7.5 million when the defense's life care planner admitted on cross-examination to using ChatGPT for her cost estimates.

$6.8 Million Hospital Settlement After a Stillbirth at 31 Weeks and the Hysterectomy That Followed

Kristen Dondero was 31 weeks pregnant and under the care of a maternal-fetal specialist when Hackensack University Medical Center sent her home on September 6, 2018 with decreased fetal movement and early labor symptoms. She returned two days later and learned her son had died in utero; the delivery that followed tore her uterus and ended in an emergency hysterectomy, blood transfusions, and further surgery under an induced coma. After five years of litigation marked by the hospital's sworn denials that any internal review of her care existed, and an Appellate Division ruling that those denials could support a fraudulent concealment claim, HMH Hospitals Corp. agreed on July 1, 2025 to pay Kristen and Andrew Dondero $6.8 million. The case against the obstetrician and his practice continued.

After trial: The $6.8 million is the hospital's share only, agreed on July 1, 2025 on confidential terms, and no appeal is possible from a settlement. Claims against Dr. See more

$6 Million Settlement for Former Student Abused by Teacher at Del Paso Heights Elementary

Twin Rivers Unified School District agreed in August 2025 to pay $6 million to a former Del Paso Heights Elementary student who said a teacher sexually abused her when she was a sixth grader. Her suit, filed in early 2023, alleged the district failed to properly screen and supervise the teacher. He pleaded guilty in February 2025 to nine counts of lewd acts upon a child and was sentenced to 215 years to life. Lauren Cerri represented the former student.

After trial: The district settled before trial, and terms beyond the $6 million figure, including how it will be funded, were not reported. A separate lawsuit by another former student against the district over the same teacher was still pending in August 2025.

$6 Million Settlement for Construction Worker Struck in Charlotte Crosswalk by Left-Turning Truck

A construction worker in a marked Charlotte crosswalk was hit by a left-turning construction truck on August 29, 2022, and suffered a traumatic brain injury with multiple skull fractures. The defense blamed him for failing to keep a lookout, but reconstruction showed the truck at 18 mph with no braking. At a July 29, 2025 mediation the case resolved for $6 million, all available liability insurance limits.

After trial: Mediated settlement of all available liability insurance limits; no trial or appeal applies. The parties' names and the case number were withheld in the report, so no docket could be checked.

$6 Million Settlement After Child Killed by Stray Bullet at Griffin Apartment Complex With Fabricated Security

An 11-year-old girl was shot and killed by a stray bullet while sleeping in her Griffin, Georgia apartment; her family's legal team overcame an assault-and-battery insurance exclusion by proving the complex had misrepresented its security features, recovering the full $6 million policy limit.

$5.75 Million Settlement for Former Leigh High School Student Abused by Teacher and Coach

The Campbell Union High School District agreed in December 2025 to pay $5.75 million to a woman who said her Leigh High School teacher and football coach sexually abused her in 2002 and 2003, when she was 15. Her April 2024 lawsuit alleged the school's dean, the teacher's wife, was told of the abuse and did nothing. Lauren Cerri represented the former student.

After trial: The district settled before trial and the amount was announced by the plaintiff's firm; the terms and payment are not public. The lawsuit also named the teacher, whose criminal case was set for trial in February 2026 and is a separate proceeding.

$5.6 Million Settlement After Mother, 23, Died in Indiana Jail Amid Nearly 20 Hours of Ignored Pleas

Jackson County, Indiana agreed to pay $5.6 million to the family of Ta'Neasha Chappell, a 23-year-old Louisville mother who died in jail custody in July 2021 after nearly 20 hours of ignored medical pleas.

$4.6 Million Settlement for Youth Hockey Player Sexually Abused by Jr. Sharks Coach

Santa Clara County Superior Court approved a $4.6 million settlement against Sharks Sports and Entertainment after coach Kevin Whitmer serially abused a youth hockey player at Sharks Ice facilities.

$4.5 Million Settlement for 14-Year-Old Killed Behind an Overloaded, Underlit Flatbed on Interstate 79

A 14-year-old high school freshman was riding home from a soccer match with her father on Interstate 79 when their vehicle struck the rear of a flatbed semi hauling lumber uphill at 21 mph in the dark. The plaintiffs' case was that the truck should never have been on that road: overloaded by more than 11,000 pounds, inadequately lit, and driven by a man not properly licensed for it.

After trial: Settled and court-approved; final. The $4,500,000 is split $3,000,000 from Quality Woods, Inc. and $1,500,000 from Allegheny Wood Products, Inc. See more

Fresno County Settlement for Family of Man Killed by Reserve Deputies at Southwest Fresno Auto Shop

Kenny Mullins, 32, was shot and killed by two reserve Fresno County deputies at a southwest Fresno auto dismantling shop on March 6, 2020. His family sued in federal court, and in August 2025 the judge ruled the civil rights trial against the deputies would proceed. In October 2025 the county agreed to pay $3.125 million to his young daughter and his mother, and the federal court approved the settlement in February 2026.

After trial: The federal court approved the settlement as a minor's compromise on February 18, 2026, and the case was dismissed in April 2026. The payer is Fresno County.